UC-NRLF 


$B    25    53fi 


^Mm. 


Digitized  by  the  Jnternet  Archive 

in  2007  with  funding  from 

IVIicrosoft  Corporation 


http://www.archive.org/details/blackbasswheretoOObradrich 


BLACK  BASS. 


Where  to  Catch  Them  in  Quantity  within  an  Hour's 
Ride  of  New  York. 


Best    Methods  and    Baits   fully  treated    upon,   with    salient 
Practical   Hints  upon  choice  of   Rods  and  Tackle. 


Weather  Prognostications  and  Atmospheric  Influences  Reviewed. 


C^CA./^^^>tt</^scv^^^Jex^.^^,g^^<^?^»l^ 


NEW  YORK : 

THE  W.   P.   POND  PUBLISHING  CO., 

37  W.  24th  street. 


Copyright,  1888,  W.  P.  Pond  &  Co. 


Let  me  live  harmlessly,  and  near  the  brink 

Of  Trent  or  Avon  have  a  dwelling-place  : 
Where  I  may  see  my  fly  or  cork  down  sink, 

With  eager  bite  of  pike,  or  bass,  or  dace. 
And  on  the  world  and  my  Creator  think  : 

While  some  men  strive  ill-gotten  goods  t'embraoe 
And  others  spend  their  time  in  base  excess 

Of  wine,  or  worse,  in  war  or  wantonness. 
Let  them  that  will,  these  pastimes  still  pursue, 

And  on  such  pleasing  fancies  feed  their  fill. 
So  I  the  fields  and  meadows  green  may  view. 

And  daily  by  fresh  rivers  walk  at  will. 

— Ancient  Angler. 


B7? 


There  is  probably  no  more  welcome  news  for 
one  fond  of  black  bass  fishing  than  a  description 
and  general  details  of  where  good  sport  may  be 
had ;  and  when  the  individual  is  a  unit  in  the 
population  of  a  large  city  and  suddenly  learns 
that  this  is  obtainable  within  an  easy  distance,  the 
information  is  worth  its  weight  in  gold,  in  his  esti- 
mation, if  in  no  one  else's.  The  main  object  of 
this  paper  on  black  bass  fishing  is  to  supply  that 
knowledge  to  a  large  contingent,  and  also  to  give  a 
few  hints  to  those,  who,  fond  of  fishing,  may  still 
be  open  to  a  few  practical  hints.  There  are  pos- 
sibly many  fishermen  like  myself,  who,  while  not 
unfamiliar  with  salt-water  sport  with  rod  and  line, 
still  know  and  fully  appreciate  the  pleasure  of 
fishing  for  the  fresh- water  black  bass. 

Salt-water  fishing  is  grand  sport,  but  there  are 
many  denizens  of  a  city  who  have  been  reared  in 
the  districts  of  fresh-water  streams,  lakes  and 
ponds,  who  have  not  had  the  opportunities  of  cul- 
tivating salt-water  sport,  and  who  even  when  sur- 


M888923 


6 

rounded  with  every  facility  for  its  pursuit,  would 
still  be  elated  at  finding  some  well-stocked  stream 
near  at  hand.  Anglers,  as  a  rule,  are  unable 
to  go  far  a-field  in  search  of  fresh-water  fish- 
ing, and  for  six  years  past  it  was  a  continual 
thorn  in  my  flesh,  mortifying  me  considerably, 
that  no  information  could  be  obtained  of  any  good 
fishing  that  did  not  necessitate  an  absence  of  sev- 
eral days. 

Last  season,  entirely  by  accident,  I  ran  upon  a 
magnificent  place  within  nineteen  miles  of  New 
York  City.  It  is  a  beautiful  spot,  easily  reached 
without  much  expense  or  trouble  and  within  an 
hour's  ride  by  rail.  In  all  my  search,  this  is  the 
one  spot  I  care  to  recommend  to  my  readers. 
Take  the  cars  from  Jersey  City  to  Rahway,  IN".  J., 
and  upon  arriving  there  walk  to  a  small  village 
called  Milton,  half  a  mile  west  of  Rahway ;  pass 
through  this,  continue  half  a  mile  further  west,  and 
you  will  reach  Milton  Lake.  An  hour  and  a  half  s 
time  covers  the  distance.  I  generally  take  the  one- 
thirty  p.  m.  train,  and  return  in  the  evening ;  but 
trains  run  almost  every  hour  to  and  from  Rahway. 

Milton  Lake  is  a  body  of  water  about  a  mile 
square,  with  two  outlets,  one  falling  over  a  pictur- 
esque stone  dam  twenty  feet  high  into  a  stream 
about  ten  feet  wide  ;  and  the  other  outlet,  a  small 
stream  flowing  through  a  mill-gate  to  the  Milton 
Mills.  In  each  of  these  streams  there  are  plenty 
of  bass,  but  in  the  lake  proper  and  in  the  little 
brook  that  flows  into  the  upper  end  of  the  lake, 


7 
they  are  in  abundance.  I  pass  the  lake  itself  and 
follow  the  little  stream  for  about  half  a  mile  nntil  I 
come  to  White' s  Farm.  This  I  have  found  to  be  the 
finest  fishing  ground.  The  stream  is  about  eight- 
een feet  wide  at  the  narrowest  part  and  from  fifty 
to  sixty  at  its  widest.  It  rises  miles  upon  miles 
back  in  the  country  somewhere,  and  runs  rippling 
and  chattering  over  the  shallows,  surging  silently 
over  the  pools  uiltil  it  empties  into  the  lake.  I 
have  never  fished  higher  than  White's  Farm,  being 
well  satisfied  with  the  sport  obtained  there,  but  the 
resident  farmers  tell  me  that  there  is  even  finer 
fishing  up  stream. 

Like  the  average  fisherman,  I  am  more  or  less 
superstitious,  and  having  always  had  good  luck  at 
my  favorite  place  (the  edge  of  a  fine  piece  of 
wood,  which,  by  the  way,  contain  a  few  wood- 
cock), I  do  not  care  to  seek  further,  and,  perhaps, 
fare  worse. 

Here,  where  the  stream  branches  off  from  a  wide 
pond-like  section,  and  slowly  flows  past  two  dozen 
or  so  fine  willows  on  either  bank,  I  have  made 
a  rude  seat  in  one  of  the  trees,  and  using  a  coat 
for  a  cushion,  have  spent  many  pleasant  hours; 
not  always  fishing,  but  on  hot  summer  afternoons, 
shaded  from  the  sun,  Just  letting  my  line  run  out 
in  the  water,  careless  about  either  rise  or  catch,  in 
quiet  repose,  looking  at  the  beautiful  natural  land- 
scape around  me,  fairly  enchanted  with  its  rural 
splendor.  Then  I  feel  that  for  a  short  space,  at 
least,  I  have  thrown  off  the  burden  of  a  busy  life,  and 


8 

can  quietly  absorb  all  that  Dame  Nature  thus  gener- 
ously affords.  T  see  the  silvery  sky-reflecting 
stream  winding  its  peaceful  way  through  the  rich 
pasturage,  under  the  rustic  bridge,  past  the  line  of 
undulating  willows,  that,  moving  with  the  faintest 
breath  of  air,  seem  ever  bending  down  to  kiss  its 
ripples ;  past  the  green  banks  and  orchards,  on 
through  clover  patches,  and  se^ge-lined  promon- 
tories, flashing  like  burnished  metal  at  the  rifts, 
black  as  night  in  the  pools,  dappled  and  flecked  by 
the  mirrored  clouds,  kissed  into  "cat's  paws''  by 
the  faint  breeze  ;  on  it  goes  until  its  farther  course 
is  lost  in  the  shadow  of  the  olive-green  woods  that 
tower  in  massive  darkness  against  the  soft  amber- 
colored  clouds  and  pale  blue  sky.  The  watchful 
kingfisher,  perched  on  the  other  side  of.  the  stream, 
eyes  me  askance  but  has  no  great  fear  at  my  pres- 
ence, the  splash  of  a  disturbed  turtle  or  the  heavier 
fall  of  a  diving  frog  calling  for  his  more  earnest 
attention.  Bass  are  leaping  in  every  direction  ;  far 
up  on  the  hillside  sounds  the  bell  of  a  cow  ;  nearer 
still  calls  "Bob  White;"  robins  are  piping;  the 
wrens  are  chirping;  a  hungry  crow  dismally  cawks, 
and  all  these  sounds  mingle  with  the  music  of 
the  millions  of  trilling  nameless  tiny  insects  con- 
cealed in  the  deep  grasses  below  me  and  in  the  flut- 
tering leaves  over-head. 

What  greater  pleasure  can  a  busy  man  Avish  for 
than  to  now  and  again  "leave  life  and  the  world 
behind"  for  a  few  hours  and  amid  surroundings 
like  these  smoke  and  chat  with  a  congenial  friend, 


9 
in  pleasant  shade,  until  the  sun  sinks  towards  the 
West,  and  the  work  of  fishing  begins. 

One  can  fish  equally  well  from  bank  or  boat. 
The  stream  sides  are  grass-bound  and  flower- 
decked  to  the  very  water  edge,  affording  dry  and 
safe  footing,  with  here  and  there  a  fence  to  lean 
against,  or  hang  your  impedimenta  upon,  A  little 
to  the  left  of  the  farmhouse  is  the  orchard,  suc- 
ceeded by  a  wood  of  nut  and  oak  trees,  which 
slope  to  the  banks  of  the  lake,  and  under  whose 
shade  bass  may  be  caught  at  any  hour  of  the  day, 
be  the  sun  ever  so  hot.  The  water  here  is  deep 
and  cool,  and  I  use  it  as  a  swimming  ground.  It 
is  also  a  fine  place  to  cool  drinks  in.  A  bottle  of 
Piper  Heidsieck  or  a  bottle  or  two  of  beer  slung 
into  the  depths  of  the  pool  with  a  stout  cord,  can  be 
drawn  up  an  hour  later  cool  as  a  snow  stream  in 
the  mountains.  A  little  distance  above  a  rustic 
bridge  spans  the  stream,  under  and  on  either  side 
of  which,  just  in  the  shadow  line,  a  dozen  or  more 
fine  bass,  weighing  up  to  four  pounds  each,  may 
be  seen  at  any  time.  As  one  crosses  the  bridge 
they  raise  their  weather-eye  a'nd  look  up,  but  do 
not  move,  whilst  hundreds  of  young  bass,  an  inch 
or  two  in  length,  shoot  from  the  innumerable  crev- 
ices like  so  many  fresh -water  shiners.  The  very 
foundation  of  the  bridge  seems  to  be  alive  with 
them.  There  are  also  a  number  of  giant  sun-fish  here 
which  seldom  refuse  a  bait.  At  daybreak  on  fine 
mornings,  when  camping  there  for  a  day  or  two,  I 
have  caught  in  less  than  an  hour  half  a  dozen  two- 


10 

pound  bass,  not  counting  other  fish  and  small  bass 
which  I  tossed  back.  I  used  one  of  Chubb' s 
ordinary  silk  trolling  lines  and  one  of  Abbey's 
spoons,  which,  by  the  way,  to  my  fancy  spin  more 
freely  and  better  than  any  others  I  have  used.  This 
I  worked  sometimes  from  a  small  bark  canoe  and 
sometimes  from  a  wooden  one,  which  I  keep  at  the 
farm,  and  use  to  paddle  up  and  down  the  stream 
between  the  willows  and  the  bridge,  or  upon  the 
lake  itself. 

Many  men  prefer  a  boat  and  oars,  but  I  find  a 
ligh t  canoe  infinitely  preferable.  The  double  paddle 
makes  less  splash  than  the  oars,  and  if  one  can 
use  the  Canadian  single  blade,  it  does  not  make 
any  noise  at  all.  Added  to  this  it  is  easier  man- 
aged, one  sees  where  one  is  going,  and  it  can  be 
lifted  with  one  hand  from  stream  to  lake,  and  lake 
to  stream. 

The  fish  under  the  bridge  are  very  tempting, 
but  also  very  wary,  and  the  residents  say  they 
are  but  seldom  caught  from'  the  bridge  itself.  One 
day  I  cast  a  yellow-body  fly,  (a  clumsy  affair, 
but  the  best  I  had,  having  lost  my  fly  book  on  the 
cars)  and  as  it  fell  on  the  water  I  let  it  drift  under 
the  bridge,  more  in  carelessness  than  by  intent, 
and  as  it  reached  the  rich  bank  of  green  weeds  out 
of  my  sight,  I  felt  the  tug  and  magnetic  vibration 
that  every  angler  knows  so  well.  Quick  as  a  flash 
I  dropped  from  the  bridge  to  the  bank,  ran  knee 
deep  into  the  stream,  and  fighting  the  fish  clear  of 
the  structure  and  reeds,  landed  a  three-pound  five- 


11 

ounce  beauty  at  my  side  on  the  bank.  **That^s 
the  first  fish  I've  seen  caught  from  the  bridge," 
said  an  admiring  native,  and  it  was  the  only 
one  I  ever  caught,  although  my  line  has  dropped 
there  many  times  before  and  since. 

Now  I  know  the  trick.  I  made  a  stout  cord  fast 
to  a  stump  above  the  bridge,  and  let  my  canoe 
float  down  under  and  through  the  bridge ,  then  I 
cast  my  fly,  and  a  boy  sitting  in  the  bows  slowly 
pulled  me  through  again  up  to  the  stump.  The 
fish  seeing  no  splash,  only  the  passing  shadow  of 
the  silent  canoe,  took  my  fly  readily,  and  in  the 
early  morning  I  was  sure  of  a  fairly  good  catch. 
If  fished  for  from  the  bridge,  they  will  lie  there,  and 
never  move  a  fin  ;  the  current  is  weak,  and  if  scared 
away  by  a  stone  or  twig,  they  will  return  in  a  sec- 
ond or  two,  almost  to  the  same  spot.  I  fancy  the 
first  one  I  caught  was  not  a  regular  *^  bridge  bass," 
but  was  one  swimming  up  stream  at  the  edge  of 
the  weeds  in  search  of  his  breakfast.  Now  if  any 
of  my  fishing  friends  think  they  can  catch  these 
bridge  bass,  I  will  guarantee  to  show  them  (or  they 
can  go  and  see  for  themselves)  from  six  to  a  dozen 
of  the  beauties  lying  there  at  any  time. 

When  I  do  not  succeed  with  them  to  my  satis- 
faction, I  get  some  one  to  systematically  drop 
stones  and  drive  them  up  stream,  where,  perhaps 
out  of  pure  unadulterated  cussedness,  they  seem  to 
readily  take  a  fly.  A  great  advantage  of  this  spot 
up  stream  is  that  the  baby  bass  and  sun  fish  give 
but  little  trouble.    The  principal  nuisances  are  the 


12 

large  eels.  If  the  line  touches  the  bottom  for  an 
instant  an  eel  seems  certain  to  be  waiting  for  it,  and 
I  would  as  readily  handle  a  squid  as  an  eel. 

My  brother,  who  frequently  accompanies  me,  is 
not  a  fisherman  and  prefers  fishing  for  eels,  and 
by  a  rule  of  contrariness  the  bass  bother  him  quite 
as  much  as  the  fresh- water  "snakes,"  as  I  call 
them,  bother  me. 

Among  my  troubles  I  must  not  forget  the  mud 
turtles  and  snappers.  They,  too,  are  a  nuisance 
when  baiting  with  worms,  and  anyone  who  desires 
a  few  of  the  "shell-backs  "  can  be  abundantly  ac- 
commodated. 

For  more  than  two  miles  of  this  lovely  stream 
any  man  who  knows  how  to  handle  a  rod  or  throw 
a  fly  can  land,  or  at  least  hook,  some  of  the  liveli- 
est two  to  three  pounders  he  could  wish  for,  and 
although  bass  vary  in  their  tastes  at  different  per- 
iods of  the  day,  I  know  nothing  better  than  the 
common  trolling  spoon  as  a  regular  thing.  There 
is  one  pool  where  I  would  almost  be  inclined  to 
wager  that  I  could  get  a  strike  with  either  spoon 
or  fly  every  ten  minutes  during  the  first  two  hours 
of  daylight,  or  from  five  to  eight  in  the  evening. 
That  is  saying  a  good  deal,  but  it  is  a  fact. 

The  best  fish  I  caught  last  season  was  when  I 
was  going  up  stream  in  the  canoe  near  the  mouth 
of  the  lake  and  close  to  the  right  side.  By  a  sudden 
movement  I  shot  under  some  willow  branches.  I  was 
just  letting  my  line  run  out  after  a  weed  strike  and  was 
holding  the  paddle  in  my  left  hand,  with  the  line  be- 


13 

tween  my  teeth,  using  my  right  hand  to  give  a 
good  push  to  clear  the  boughs,  when  '*zip,  zip!" 
a  beauty  seized  my  bait  as  I  floated  out.  I  got 
nervous,  upset  my  canoe  and  rolled  into  the  water, 
but  waded  on  shore  and  landed  my  fish.  He 
weighed  four  pounds,  seven  ounces,  live  weight, 
and  I  have  his  head  and  tail  and  a  clear  con- 
conscience  to  prove  it. 

The  last  half  day  of  the  season  I  was  fishing  at 
Milton  Lake,  and  I  caught  eighteen  fine  bass,  and 
two  eels,  the  latter  as  large  round  as  a  policeman's 
club  and  as  dirty  and  slimy  as  usual.  Eels  always 
remind  me  of  a  skinny  circus  contortionist.  When 
I  am  unfortunate  enough  to  hook  one,  I  generally 
make  a  clean  cut  of  two  yards  of  silk  line,  hook 
and  all,  and  tie  him  up  to  the  fence,  or  bow  stay  of 
my  canoe.  I  would  willingly  let  all  of  them  go  again 
only  from  a  lingering  remnant  of  a  boyish  supei*- 
stition  that  they  would  go  and  tell  all  the  bass 
how  horribly  indigestible  my  bait  was. 

I  remember  catching  a  big  snapping  turtle, 
weighing  about  twelve  pounds,  in  the  lake  one 
day.  When  I  pulled  it  up,  my  companion 
grabbed  it,  and  I  really  think  I  would  have  jumped 
overboard  but  for  the  fear  that  others  might  be 
around  to  make  things  more  pleasant  for  me  for 
jumping  "  from  the  frying  pan  into  the  fire."  I 
suppose  a  salt-water  fisherman  would  have  yelled 
and  danced  for  joy ;  I  am  not  built  that  way. 
When  I  fish  for  bass,  I  want  bass,  and  when  I  fish 
for  turtles — No  !  I  would  not  want  them  even  then. 


14 

The  next  one  that  takes  my  bait  can  have  pole, 
line,  hook  and  all. 

The  bass  in  the  lake  are  innumerable,  but  they 
are  more  difficult  to  catch  than  those  in  the  stream, 
a  fact  which  pleases  the  true  fisherman,  who  fishes 
to  match  his  skill  and  science  against  the  instinct 
and  cunning  of  the  fish,  rather  than  with  the  one 
sole  intention  of  making  his  bag  larger  than  that 
of  any  preceeding  angler. 

Remember  the  lake  bass  want  sport  more  than 
food,  and  the  bait  must  be  handled  in  a  lively 
manner  to  bring  success.  Some  fifteen  years  ago 
this  water  was  stocked  by  some  wealthy  Jersey 
men,  and,  from  what  I  can  learn,  not  half  a  dozen 
expert  anglers  have  visited  its  waters  in  the  past 
ten  years,  and  there  is  no  record  of  anybody  ever 
having  fished  the  stream  I  here  describe 

Last  season  I  only  met  three  strangers  at  the 
lake,  but  they  never  seemed  to  catch  anything  be- 
yond eels,  turtles,  sunfish,  and  a  few  two  inch 
bass,  the  name  of  which  they  did  not  even  know, 
and  I  got  into  their  bad  graces  by  telling  them  they 
ought  to  return  the  bass  into  the  lake.  They 
thought  I  was  a  crank,  in  fact  one  of  them  told  me 
so.  These  men  were  salt-water  sports,  and  one 
man  who  came  there  from  Newark,  N.  J.,  was  ac- 
tually baiting  with  shrimps  for  fresh- water  bass 
and  had  no  less  than  eight  hooks  upon  his  line,  all 
baited  with  shrimps.  This  man  also  told  me  that 
there  were  no  decent  fish  in  the  lake,  and  strange 


15 

to  say,  this  appears  to  be  the  general  opinion  of 
the  few  visitors. 

I  met  one  good  fly  fisherman  a  year  ago,  who  had 
several  fine  beauties  on  the  bank.  He  had  taken 
his  stand  behind  my  tree  before  I  arrived,  and  he 
was  an  artist.  We  becjame  good  friends  and  prom- 
ised to  meet  again,  but  have  not  done  so  as  yet. 
He  agreed  with  me  that  the  lake  was  full  of  beau- 
tiful fish,  and  that  they  were  a  trifle  hard  to  catch, 
which  fact  we  both  agreed  was  very  good  for  the 
interests  of  the  true  lovers  of  the  art  of  angling. 

Another  fine  place  for  bass  within  an  easy  dis- 
tance of  New  York  is  Greenwood  Lake,  which  lies 
half  in  New  York  and  half  in  New  Jersey.  It  is  on 
the  Erie  railroad  and  has  several  good  hotels  and  a 
club  house  open  during  the  summer.  Guides  are 
to  be  had  at  a  moderate  figure,  and  the  fishing  dur- 
ing the  last  three  seasons  has  been  good. 

Lake  Ronkonkoma,  Long  Island,  is  another  good 
fishing  ground.  Take  the  Long  Island  railroad  to 
the  depot  at  Ronkonkoma  ;  from  there  stages  run 
to  the  lake  during  the  season.  Distance,  about  two 
miles. 

Tuxedo  Park  is  confined  to  members  of  the  Tux- 
edo Park  Club,  and  has  a  fine  supply  of  large  and 
lively  bass,  which  take  a  fly  remarkably  well. 

At  Lake  Hopatcong,  N.  Y.,  bass  are  plentiful, 
but  without  a  guide  little  good  is  to  be  done.  It  lies 
on  the  Morris  and  Essex  railroad,  two  hours  ride 
from  Hoboken.  During  the  summer  a  very  good 
house,  the  Hotel  Breslin,  is  open.     This  hotel  was 


16 

first  opened  last  year,  is  exceedingly  moderate  in 
its  charges,  is  well  fitted  throughout,  and  is  by  far 
the  best  house  of  them  all.  There  are  several  guides 
at  the  Lake,  the  best  average  of  them  being  Mor- 
ris Decker,  who  has  an  island  in  the  lake  on  which 
he  lets  out  tents  to  camping  parties,  supplying 
them  with  all  necessaries  at  reasonable  terms.  He 
is  well  posted  in  the  various  feeding  grounds,  and 
with  him  good  sport  is  a  certainty,  if  the  weather 
is  right.  There  are  some  very  large  bass  here.  Mr. 
Eugene  C.  Blackford  has  caught  several  at  four 
and  a  half  pounds,  and  five  and  a  quarter  pounds. 
One  was  caught  three  years  ago  weighing  eight 
pounds  two  ounces.  There  are  plenty  of  good 
pickerel,  and  anglers  are  but  little  annoyed  by  sun- 
fish  or  eels.  There  is  a  fine  fishing  club-house  on 
Bertrand  Island,  which  is  very  exclusive.  The  best 
bait  here  has  proved  to  be  live  bait,  minnows,  or 
frogs.  Now  as  regards  bait  for  still-fishing,  I  have 
tried  almost  everything  at  odd  times. 

Bass  are  very  peculiar  fish  as  regards  feeding. 
Sometimes  they  take  one  bait  right  along  all  day,  and 
at  other  times  will  change  morning,  noon,  and  night, 
also  from  sunshine  to  cloud.  I  generally  start  in  the 
early  morning  with  grasshoppers,  and  if  that  does 
not  suit  them,  I  vary  it  to  the  helgramite — known 
to  naturalists  as  the  larvse  of  the  horned  corydalis, 
locally  called  '*dobsons,"  ^^dobsell,"  ^'hellion," 
*  *' crawler,"  "kill-devil,"  etc. — a  live  minnow,  small 
green  frog,  small  bull-head,  or  a  "lamper" — local 
name  for  small  lamprey  eel. 


17 

The  dobson  is  the  most  stable  bait  for  still  fish- 
ing, and  a  good  plan  is  to  pass  a  piece  of  silk  under 
the  shield  in  the  back  and  then  pass  the  hook 
through  that ;  the  same  scheme  is  equally  good  with 
grasshoppers.  Towards  evening,  I  found  worms  a 
very  good  bait,  except  when  rain  threatened. 

In  using  a  minnow,  I  pass  the  hook  up  through 
the  lower  lip  and  out  the  nostril  ;  it  then  lives  a 
long  time.  Some  anglers  hook  through  both  lips, 
the  lower  one  first.  Hooked  either  way,  a  dead 
minnow  moves  like  a  live  one.  I  always  treat  a  min- 
now as  Izaak  Walton  spoke  of  a  frog,  "  as  if  I  loved 
him." 

The  angler  cannot  be  too  careful  of  his  minnows.  I 
change  the  water  frequently,  not  waiting  for  them 
to  come  up  to  breathe  ;  it  is  then  too  late,  and  they 
cannot  be  resuscitated.  In  hot  weather  I  place  a 
piece  of  ice  in  flannel  on  the  top  of  the  pail. 
A  little  salt  added  to  the  water  is  a  great  improve- 
ment, about  as  much  as  will  lie  on  a  silver  quarter, 
to  two  gallons  of  water.  Fifty  minnows  to  a  five 
gallon  pail  with  a  handful  of  weeds  to  keep  the 
fish  from  bruising  themselves,  is  about  the  right 
proportion  of  fish  to  space. 

Of  all  baits  the  old  Florida  "bob,"  I  think,  is 
still  the  most  effective.  It  was  mentioned  by  Ber- 
tram, in  1764,  and  is  still  used.  It  is  made  by  tying 
three  hooks  back  to  back,  invested  with  a  piece  of 
deer's  tail  somewhat  in  the  manner  of  a  large  hackle, 
studded  vvith  scarlet  feathers,  forming  a  tassel  or 
tuft  similar  to  that  used  on  the  trolling  spoon. 


18 

If  this  be  thrown  with  a  sweeping  surface  draw 
under  trees  or  bushes,  it  is  almost  irresistible. 
On  the  spoon  I  always  run  a  lamper  or  a  min- 
now, and  for  slow  water,  like  the  stream  at  Milton, 
or  for  lake  fishing,  I  manufacture  one  as  follows  : 
A  spoon  not  more  than  three  quarters  of  an  inch  in 
length.  If  you  cannot  buy  one  so  small,  get  one 
made  by  some  working  jeweller  or  metallist.  Then 
slide  a  round  black  bead  as  large  as  a  pea  on  your 
line  just  above  your  hook,  letting  the  spoon  be 
above  it.  This  will  be  found  to  spin  in  the  slowest 
water,  and,  as  every  bass  fisher  knows,  the  slower 
the  rate  of  progression,  the  better,  so  long  as  the 
spoon  is  spinning.  I  seldom  use  any  sinker  at 
Milton  Lake,  there  being  little  or  no  current,  and 
the  trees  as  a  rule  keep  off  any  wind.  In  the  stream 
I  generally  drift  down,  letting  my  line  float  in 
front  of  the  boat,  and  getting  well  down  stream 
troll  back  up  stream,  to  drift  down  again.  For  the 
benefit  of  the  tyros  I  may  here  remark,  that  suc- 
cess in  trolling  for  bass,  I  think,  depends  largely 
upon  a  perfect  knowledge  of  the  depth  of  water, 
and  that  the  bait  should  be  kept  about  eighteen 
inches  from  the  bottom  all  the  way.  I  study  the 
pools  in  my  favorite  streams,  locating  them  by 
trees,  etc.,  on  the  bank,  and  then  judge  the  depth 
my  bait  lies  at  by  the  angle  at  which  my  line  runs 
from  my  mouth  or  pole  to  the  water.  This  will, 
with  a  little  practice,  tell  me  at  what  depth  my  bait 
is  swimming.  Dobsons  and  small  bull-heads  I 
pbtain  by  striking  the  large  rocks  iu  the  rifts  aud 


19 

shallows  with  another  large  stone,  and  setting 
a  net  fixed  upon  a  bowed  stick  behind  it.  The  bull- 
heads and  dobsons  will  float,  stunned,  into  its 
meshes.  I  have  also  found  them  clinging  to  old 
spiles  supporting  a  dam,  or  submerged  stonework. 
They  may  be  kept  alive  any  length  of  time  if  placed 
in  a  can  containing  rotten  wood.  They  are  the  best 
shallow  water  bait  for  still  fishing.  My  experience 
is  that  it  pays  better  to  buy  bait  than  hunt  for  it, 
which  takes  up  time  and  tires  one. 

An  all  important  point  is  the  best  day  for  fishing 
from  a  weather  point  of  view.  We  all  know  the 
varied  ideas  and  superstitions  of  fishermen,  and 
truly  there  is  a  great  deal  to  be  said  in  favor  of 
many  of  the  theories  when  backed  by  actual  obser- 
vation. 

Bass  are  found  in  different  localities  at  different 
times  ;  in  the  early  part  of  the  season  they  will  be 
found  on  the  rifts  where,  of  course,  the  water  is 
warmest ;  the  best  bait  at  this  time  is  the  helgra- 
mite  and  larvae  ;  as  the  season  advances  they  will 
move  to  the  deeper  still  water  that  lies  under  the 
bushes  and  trees,  taking  insects  and  flies  ;  and 
later  still,  they  will  be  found  in  the  deep  holes, 
lying  under  rocky  ledges,  or  where  gravel  has  fallen 
from  the  banks  and  been  washed  away  by  the  spring 
freshets.  At  this  period  the  best  bait  is  small  min- 
nows, crayfish,  molluscs,  etc.  Yet  without  rhyme 
and  reason,  I  find  they  may  at  any  time  be  found 
in  deep  water  one  day  and  in  the  shallows  the 
ne^t, 


20 

As  a  rule  I  fish  the  shallows  until  the  reeds, 
rushes,  and  other  acquatic  plants  fringing  the 
deeper  waters  are  well  grown ;  then  I  try  among 
them,  finding  flies  give  the  best  sport. 

For  bait  fishing,  it  really  does  not  appear  to  make 
much  difference  what  weather  is  around,  so  that  the 
wind  is  not  a  cold  or  chilly  one.  The  fish  in  deep 
water  are  not  so  easily  affected  as  those  in  the  shaL 
lows,  and  very  good  sport  may  be  had  even  in  a 
stiff'  breeze,  if  moderately  warm  and  fine.  In  fact 
some  wind  is  necessary  for  black  bass  fishing,  and  it 
is  better  to  have  too  much  than  none  at  all.  One 
reason  for  this  is,  that  wind  ruffles  the  surface  of 
the  water  and  renders  it  more  difficult  for  the  fish 
to  see  the-angler. 

This  is  a  point  of  greater  importance  than  is  com- 
monly supposed.  Fish  both  see  and  hear  well,  and 
the  idea  that  they  cannot  see  is  based  upon  the 
great  difference  visible  between  an  artificial  fly  and 
a  real  one.  As  a  matter  of  fact  few  men  could  tell 
the  difference  between  them  when  in  the  water, 
the  surface  being  covered  with  froth  and  suds  from 
an  eddy  or  foam  and  bubbles  from  a  rapid,  the  sur- 
face ruffled  by  a  fresh  breeze,  and  shadowed  by  drift- 
ing clouds.  I  have  frequently  seen  bass  dart  like 
an  arrow  and  seize  the  bait  from  a  distance  of  thirty 
feet.  A  sombre  suit  of  clothes,  the  hue  of  which 
mingles  with  the  foliage  or  verdue,  is  a  wise  pre- 
caution, for  fish  undoubtedly  see,  and  see  remark- 
ably well. 

How  often  have  we  seen  a  bright  glistening  sub- 


21 

stance  like  a  sleeve  button  or  a  coin,  dropped  into 
water  and  swallowed  immediately  ?  I  have  known 
bass  to  be  caught  on  a  bare  bright  hook,  and  the 
funny  stories  one  laughs  at  about  wintergreen  berries 
and  lish  scales  proving  attractive  bait  are  not  so 
much  out  of  probability. 

In  the  Southern  States  a  belief  exists  that  bass 
are  always  on  the  feed  when  the  moon  is  above  the 
horizon,  particularly  at  rise  and  set ;  many  old  ex- 
perienced fishermen  will  only  fish  during  the  last 
quarter  until  the  new  moon.  The  same  variety  of 
ideas  exist  regarding  rain  ;  one  angler  believes  that 
bass  will  not  bite  before  a  rain,  another  during  a 
rain,  and  still  another  after  a  rain.  As  a  matter  of 
fact  they  feed  irrespective  of  rain,  but  of  course  we 
have  all  found  the  best  time  is  undoubtedly  just 
after  a  rain,  because  of  the  great  number  of  insects 
and  larvfB  that  are  washed  or  shaken  into  the  water 
from  the  overhanging  branches  of  trees  and  bushes. 

One  reason  why  they  do  not  take  the  bait  so  well 
just  before  the  rain  is  because  of  the  lull  that  takes 
place,  causing  the  water  to  become  flat  and  still,  so 
rendering  objects,  especially  the  angler,  more  dis- 
tinct. The  bass  is  a  very  wary  fish,  and  requires 
but  little  to  make  them  uneasy  and  shy.  Night 
and  morning  is  the  best  time  for  bait  fishing,  unless 
the  weather  be  cold  ;  then  from  about  3  to  6  p.m. 
For  fly  fishing,  two  hours  after  sunrise  and  one 
hour  or  two  before  dark  will  be  found  the  most 
tempting  time. 

In  lake  fishing  it  is  always  best  to  run  out  to  the 


deep  water  and  fish  in  towards  the  shallows  or 
feeding  grounds,  as  the  boat  being  in  the  deeper 
water  is  not  so  conspicuous  to  the  fish  in  the  shal- 
lows. When  a  bass  is  hooked,  I  always  work  to- 
ward deep  water,  so  as  to  play  the  fish  freely  and 
avoid  snags,  rocks,  weeds,  etc. 

If  fishing  from  a  bank,  I  get  as  near  the  level  of 
the  water  as  possible,  and  when'  a  fish  is  hooked,  I 
head  at  once  to  the  deepest  water  practicable. 

I  find  it  a  good  plan  to  let  the  bass  have  the  bait 
from  two  to  ten  seconds,  according  to  the  way  he 
takes  it;  then  strike  at  once,  giving  him  line  freely, 
but  keeping  the  thumb  on  the  reel  as  a  drag. 
Click  reels  are  an  abomination.  I  never  jerk  the 
rod,  but  hook  with  a  twist  of  the  wrist,  remember- 
ing the  golden  rule  that  from  the  moment  a  bass 
takes  the  bait  until  he  is  landed  the  line  must 
he  kept  tight,  as  one  second  of  slack  line  will  lose 
him.  The  point  of  the  rod  I  keep  bent  by  the  pull 
of  the  fish,  which  is  made  to  fight  for  every  inch  of 
line.  I  reel  in  whenever  practicable  and  kil 
the  fish  on  the  line. 

I  never  let  a  fish  get  among  the  weeds  ;  I  coax 
him  off  if  possible,  but  if  this  is  not  practicable, 
I  give  him  the  butt,  and  either  get  him  away  or  break 
the  pole,  which  is  preferable  to  losing  the  fish  by 
weeds  or  snags.  When  thoroughly  exhausted,  I 
land  him,  of  course,  but  am  never  in  a  hurry.  If 
a  pole  net  be  used  I  sink  it  under  him  and  gently 
lift  it  until  the  fish  falls  into  it. 

In  order  to  appreciate  black  bass  fishing  to  the 


23 

full,  considerable  attention  most  assuredly  must  be 
paid  to  suitable  tackle.  Any  boy  may  catch  sun- 
fish,  suckers,  or  trout  with  a  bean  pole,  a  piece  of 
cord  for  a  line  and  a  rude  nondescript  bait.  Black 
bass  are  a  fish  of  an  entirely  different  type,  and 
the  day  when  a  black  bass  rod  was  considered  to 
mean  one  weighing  two  pounds  and  measuring 
sixteen  feet,  with  a  chalk  line,  and  a  reel  like  a 
small  clock,  is  delegated  to  the  far  off  past  of  ten 
years  ago.  Some  few  of  the  old  anglers  made  their 
own  rods,  and  scored  heavily  in  their  takes  of  fish, 
to  the  wonder  and  amazement  of  the  other  fisher- 
men who  still  adhered  to  the  old  heavy  pattern. 

My  idea  of  the  best  rod  for  black  bass  fishing  is 
the  happy  medium  between  the  trout  fly  rod,  and 
the  trout  bait  rod.  The  one  I  generally  use  is 
eight  feet  three  inches  long,  weighs  nine  ounces, 
is  three-jointed,  the  balance  perfect,  and  the  bend 
true  from  tip  to  butt.  It  was  made  by  H.  H. 
Kiffe,  318  Fulton  street,  Brooklyn.  I  have  killed 
many  bass  with  this  rod  during  the  past  two  sea- 
sons, some  weighing  as  high  as  four  pounds,  and 
have  also  caught  pickerel  weighing  eight  pounds 
with  the  same  pole.  The  butt  is  white  ash,  and 
the  second  joint  and  tip  finely  selected  lance  wood. 
The  butt  has  a  wound  grip,  and  the  metal  tip  is  of 
the  four-ring  pattern,  the  strongest  and  lightest 
made.  I  prefer  standing  guides.  Some  peo- 
ple prefer  Greenheart  or  Wasahba  for  tips,  but 
lancewood  or  red  cedar  is  the  best,  I  think. 

The  great  fault  in  many  rods  is  want  of  "  back," 


24 

which  results  from  a  too  slender  butt.  This  pro- 
duces a  double  action  in  the  rod,  and  prevents  a 
clear  satisfactory  cast.  In  England  this  quality 
was  made  a  specialty  for  salmon  rods  some  years 
ago,  it  being  supposed  that  it  increased  the  length 
of  the  cast.  Recent  experiences  proved  this  to  be 
a  fallacious  idea,  and  such  a  rod  required  quite  an 
education  to  use  with  any  degree  of  accuracy. 

If  a  man  can  throw  a  minnow  thirty  yards  with 
any  degree  of  accuracy,  he  should  be  well  satisfied, 
as  that  is  more  than  sufficient  for  average  bass 
fishing.  * 

A  peculiar,  but,  I  think,  mistaken  idea  is  that  a 
rod  should  be  in  proportion  to  a  man's  size.  One 
can  understand  this  idea  in  regard  to  a  gun  for  which 
a  man  should  be  measured  as  for  a  coat,  but  with  a 
rod  it  is  different,  and  should  be  made  to  vary 
with  the  type  of  fishing  practised.  The  differ- 
ence in  weight  being  only  a  few  ounces  exposes  the 
foolishness  of  this  theory.  All  that  matters  is  the 
question  of  balance  ;  if  that  is  all  right,  the  size  or 
weight  matters  very  little. 

A  more  important  point  is,  that  a  cheap  rod  is 
always  a  dear  rod,  in  price  alone.  As  in  anything 
else,  work  and  quality  of  material  go  for  every- 
thing, and  if  a  good  sound  rod  is  required,  a  fair 
price  must  be  paid  to  some  good  maker  for  it. 

The  line  is  a  most  important  item,  and  it  is  al- 
ways best  to  give  a  good  price  for  a  hand  made  line 
turned  out  by  a  good  firm.  The  braided  line  to  me 
is  the  perfection  of  excellence.      I  do  not  like  a 


25 

tapered  line  at  any  price.  Next  to  the  silk  line  I 
prefer  tlie  silk  grass  lines  of  the  Japanese. 

The  finest  hooks  in  the  trade  are  made  in  Eng- 
land, where  special  attention  has  been  paid  to  this 
industry  for  over  two  hundred  years,  the  tow^  of 
Redditch  being  supported  almost  exclusively  by 
the  hook  factories.  The  best  are  the  ''Sproat," 
''Cork- shaped  Limerick,"  ''Round  Bend  Carlisle," 
and  "Hollow  Point  Aberdeen,"  The  hook  is  of 
the  most  vital  importance  to  the  fisherman,  and 
the  best  shape  is  that  where  the  point  of  the  barb  is 
turned  round  towards  the  shank.  First  class 
hooks  are  always  japanned  or  black ;  the  inferior 
ones  are  blued,  and  these,  if  subjected  to  a  heavy 
strain  will  straighten  right  out.  The  black  bass  is 
extremely  liable  to  cause  this,  as  it  always  struggles 
hard  both  in  and  out  the  water  from  the  moment 
of  hooking  to  the  final  gasp.  A  hook  with  the 
proper  bend  will  never  pierce  foul,  but  will  strike 
right  through  the  mouth,  never  springing  out. 

Regarding  flies,  every  man  has  his  own  opinions 
and  fancies.  My  own  favorites  are  the  "  Marston," 
"W.  H.  Hammett,"  "Reader,"  "Silver  Ibis,"  "Ver- 
mont," "Imperial,"  "La  Belle,"  "Royal  Coach- 
man," "  Blue  Jay"  and  "Claret,"  made  by  C.  F. 
Orvis,  of  Manchester,  Vt. 

As  to  spoons,  most  people  use  far  too  large  a 
spoon  for  bass,  I  am  sure  ;  even  the  dealers  do  not 
recognize  this  fact,  and  are  continually  pressing 
pickerel  spoons  upon  their  customers  who  do  not 
happen  to  know  better.     My  idea  of  a  bass  spoon 


26 

is  one  no  larger  than  one-third  of  an  ordinary  tea- 
spoon for  the  hand-line,  and  for  rod  use  one  even 
still  smaller. 

Artificial  insects  may  be  used  in  surface  fishing, 
but  only  the  most  skilful  anglers  should  expect  suc- 
cess, as  the  manipulation  of  them  requires  ex- 
ceedingly delicate  service. 

I  believe  that  the  black  bass  will  eventually  be- 
come the  game  fish  of  the  country.  Trout  streams 
are  drying  up  by  reason  of  trees  being  cut  down ; 
mills  and  factories  being  erected,  and  dams  hold- 
ing the  water  half  stagnant  during  half  the  year. 
This  must  eventually  deal  a  death  blow  to  the  trout, 
and  even  now  the  votaries  of  blaokbass  fishing  out- 
number those  of  the  trout  ten  to  one. 

One  last  piece  of  advice  I  offer  you,  is  to  al- 
ways reel  the  line  carefully  after  fishing,  as  a  man 
would  clean  his  gun  after  shooting.  Guide  it  to  its 
place  with  the  thumb,  and  run  it  from  side  to  side 
of  the  reel  like  cotton  on  a  spool.  This  will  let  it 
dry  evenly  and  prevent  all  bunching  and  snarling. 
It  is  just  as  easy  to  do  this  as  not,  and  the  habit 
once  gained  will  become  a  mechanical  act,  and 
save  you  lots  of  trouble  and  time  before  and  afford 
you  good  pleasure  after  you  begin  fishing. 


m 


